


eyatir

by MageOfCole



Series: Cole Does Whumptober 2020 [5]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Brotherly CC-2224 | Cody & CT-7567 | Rex, CT-7567 | Rex Needs a Hug, Fallen Obi-Wan Kenobi, Fix-It, Force-Sensitive CC-2224 | Cody, Get Fucked Palpatine, Gray Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi, Hurt CT-7567 | Rex, Hurt Obi-Wan Kenobi, Kamino is terrible!!, M/M, Mando'a, On the Run, Polyamorous Character, Protective CC-2224 | Cody, Protective Obi-Wan Kenobi, Rescue, Slavery, Torture, Whump, Whumptober, Whumptober 2020, Worried CC-2224 | Cody, Zygerrian Slave Arc, the clones deserve better
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:27:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26828083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MageOfCole/pseuds/MageOfCole
Summary: (escape)“Don’t do anything to anger them, Rex.” His Jedi had said quietly, something haunted in his eyes and a collar around his throat. “Don’t look them in the eyes, keep your head down.”(No.5 - Where Do You Think You're Going?)
Relationships: CC-2224 | Cody & CT-7567 | Rex, CC-2224 | Cody/Obi-Wan Kenobi, CC-2224 | Cody/Obi-Wan Kenobi/CT-7567 | Rex, Obi-Wan Kenobi/CT-7567 | Rex
Series: Cole Does Whumptober 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949908
Comments: 36
Kudos: 409





	eyatir

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ThirteenthMouse6572](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThirteenthMouse6572/gifts).



> I know I've labeled it as Fallen Obi-Wan, but that's not completely accurate: how I've categorized this, it's similar to an autistic burnout or meltdown - where Obi-Wan ended up too overstimulated, and ended up lashing out. Now that he's calmed down, he's going to have to rebuild everything to get proper control of himself again, and even then he might not end up being completely the same as he was before.  
> (Advice from a person with autism: do not manhandle someone who has suffered from a meltdown or burnout, unless you need to restrain them - gently- if they're in danger of hurting themselves or another person)

The last thing Rex remembers was the burning agony of electricity tearing through his already brutalized body, and Obi-Wan’s cry of alarm. The mission looking for the lost colonists of Kiros had been a shitshow from the start, and Rex had known, deep down, that something would go wrong - because something _always_ went wrong.

Still aching from the _haran_ that had been Umbara, Rex had been drifting through his duties like he was in a fog - he still did what was expected of him with the competence and skill he was known for, but a part of him just wasn’t fully _there_ . Some part of him was still in that air base on Umbara, surrounded by the dead and unable to pull the trigger as Krell laughs. He sees Hardcase in his nightmares, him and all those Vode who had been lost to the madman parading around like a Jedi, he sees Dogma, begging for help as he’s locked away on Kamino even though his brother hadn’t made a noise as he had been led away. He sees Fives’ accusing look, and him and Jesse staring down a firing squad of their own siblings. He knows his brothers - his men - haven’t forgiven him; hells, _he_ hasn’t forgiven himself for what he let Krell get away with.

Seeing Obi-Wan down there in that arena had been the most like himself that Rex had been for a long time. Seeing his partner and Jedi chained and bruised had lit a fire in Rex that had been put out on Umbara.

So of course it had gone wrong.

He had woken up on a slave transport heading for a labour camp, with a stone faced Obi-Wan seated across from him in their cell, and with no idea if General Skywalker and Commander Tano were okay.

Little gods, Cody must have been losing his mind.

“Don’t do anything to anger them, Rex.” His Jedi had said quietly, something haunted in his eyes and a collar around his throat. “Don’t look them in the eyes, keep your head down.” It had been a moment of cold acceptance when Rex had looked at the man’s pale face and saw the quiet understanding that came with experience - the same sort of look he had seen on General Skywalker when he thought no one was looking.

He had done his best to keep his head down and his mouth shut as their stay on Kedavo had dragged on, hoping to slip past the notice of the overseers much like he had back on Kamino, where too much attention could possibly spell his decommissioning. He had done his best to remind Obi-Wan of his own warnings, but his Jedi was too _good_ , too kind, and he never could sit by while others suffered. Unfortunately, the slavers saw exactly what he did too.

He had done his best to support his Jedi as he crumbled under the stress, under the misplaced guilt as others were punished in his place. Watching him break had hurt more than the whips that tore his skin or the electricity that was forced through his body. It hurt that Rex couldn’t protect him - and no doubt it hurt Obi-Wan that he couldn’t do the same for Rex.

It didn’t mean they couldn’t try.

His last memory before losing consciousness was of the whip tearing into him, skin and muscle tearing and electricity coursing through his thrashing body. He’s not even sure what they had done to anger the overseer this time, only that the slavers had come to drag them out of the bunk they had shared. They had been thrown at the base of the Zygerrian’s hover chair, and the overseer had been completely enraged at _something_ , watching as they had been forced to their knees and lifted their whips. It probably wasn’t even something they had done, but they has just been the ones chosen for him to take his anger out on.

There had been pain, and electrowhip digging into the side of his temple, and then nothing as his vision went white, then black, as Obi-Wan’s voice rang in his ears. Then he was floating, body suspended in nothingness, his awareness and thoughts returning at a slow crawl. For a while, it’s just Rex, left alone with his memories, his life swimming around him in the sea of unconsciousness. He doesn’t know how long it’s been when feeling in his body starts to return. It starts as a dull ache in his head that spreads to the rest of him and rises like the tide. It’s accompanied by the feather-soft brushes of hands touching him, fingers soothing through his hair and chasing away the pain.

He feels safe. Safe and warm. It’s a rare feeling, usually reserved for those scarce night cycles when the 501st and 212th meet up and Rex could sleep against Cody’s warm back, white Obi-Wan’s arm thrown over his waist, listening to the Commander and Jedi quietly speak over him, their voices lulling him to a deeper sleep then he’d ever get otherwise.

It’s odd, feeling safe again.

Rex stirs, drifting away as those hands still in his hair. Everything is quiet and still, and he’s lying on a comfortable cot, with soft blankets pulled up to his chin. He lets out a quiet whine when that blissfully warm hand retreats, and a familiar chuckle reaches his ears.

“Being pretty needy, Rex’ika.”

Rex’s eyes snap open, meeting those heart-wrenchingly familiar amber gaze, and honestly, he could have cried at the sight of his _ori’vod_ leaning over him. “Cody.” He gasps, and Cody smiles at him softly, hand moving to press against his chest when the blond clone starts to rise.

Rex drinks in the sight of his brother like a man dying of thirst; he’s stripped out of the upper half of his armour down to his blacks, with only his legs covered by white and orange plastoid. There are deep, dark bags under his brother’s eyes, and a bacta patch on his temple, but he’s smiling.

“Hey, take it easy, _vod_.” Cody soothes, pushing him back against the soft mattress. “Pace will have my neck if you pull those stitches.”

“ _Cody_.” Rex finds himself struggling against the blankets folded around him, reaching for his brother, and the other clone meets him half-way, gently taking Rex’s hand in his own.

“ _Udesii_ , Rex’ika.” Cody murmurs, voice gentle in the way it got when he coached him through breathing after a nightmare, and his _ori’vod_ perches himself on the edge of Rex’s cot, his other hand traveling back to Rex’s too-long hair to run his fingers through his blond curls. “You’re safe, _verd’ika_. You’re on the Negotiator, in the medical bay. You’re free. Breathe, _vod’ika_.”

“ _Kot’vod_.” He gasps, like a fish out of water, and Cody’s face somehow grows even softer. He hadn’t used that nickname since his second growth cycle, back when he was a lanky cadet who thought he didn’t need his _ori’vod_ constantly watching his back. He had been overconfident then - but scared too. Scared that if Cody got too close to him the Longnecks would take him away too.

Rex chokes, eyes burning, and he grips his brother’s hand like a life line.

“ _K’uur_ , Rex’ika.” Cody soothes, pressing a soft _kov'nyn_ to Rex’s bandaged forehead. “I’m here - and I’m not letting you out of my sight any time soon.” Rex snorts wetly, letting his eyes slide shut as he just breathes with his brother.

“Obi-Wan?” He asks quietly, achingly aware that their partner is gone, not within Rex’s sight for the first time since everything had gone to shit. Not there for Rex to watch over, to make sure no one is going to go for his open back. It’s agonizing, not being able to see the copper haired Jedi, and it’s making Rex’s heart speed up with anxiety.

He blinks his eyes open, meeting Cody’s gaze with his own once again, and he watches as his brother tilts his head, eyes growing distant for a long moment, as if he was listening to something that wasn’t there. When Rex blinks again, the odd expression is gone, replaced with another smile.

“He’s on his way, _vod’ika_.” He assures, and Rex lets out a small gust of air.

“ _Me’bana_?” He asks, tightening his hold on his brother’s hand into a squeeze, and Cody looks at him, considering.

The Commander sighs. “Obi-Wan contacted us - I’m not completely sure what happened.” His brother admits, then shrugs at Rex’s wide-eyed stare. “The Zygerrians were all dead, and you were in rough shape. Obi-Wan -” Cody cuts himself off, swallows, then shakes his head, “- he just needed a bit of bacta. The 501st had retrieved Skywalker and Tano, and we waited for General Koon to arrive to take the colonists back home.” He shares, and Rex narrows his eyes at his brother - he’s hiding something. Or at least not sharing it.

Cody may have been an amazing liar, but Rex knows all his tells. He knows Cody almost as well as he knows himself. The slightest tightening of his brow, pulling at his scar, could give him away if someone knew what they were looking for.

“ _Cody_.”

The Commander sighs, ruffling Rex’s curls almost subconsciously, gaze distant again. “We’re in hyperspace.” Cody tells him, “You’ve been unconscious for three week, _vod_. Missing for four.” Rex winces, and his brother nods in agreement, “You went right into surgery the moment we brought you on board -” he runs a hand across the wrappings constricting Rex’s head, resting his fingers on his temple, and there’s something dark and angry in his brother’s eyes, “- then into bacta as soon as Pace cleared you.”

“We meeting back up with the 501st?” Rex asks, and Cody goes quiet, scar tightening once more.

“No, we’re not.” Both clones straighten as the door hisses open, and something in Rex’s chest lightens at the sound of the familiar voice. His head turns, a smile spreading across his face at the sight of his Jedi leaning in the doorway, looking clean and healthy once more - nothing like he had looked back on Kedavo.

“Obi-Wan.” He whispers in greeting, breathing so much easier now that the older man was in sight, and his Jedi smiles back, so soft and loving and the sight makes Rex choke up.

“Hello Rex.” Obi-Wan slips into the private room and towards his bed. He stops to gently press his lips to Cody’s when his Commander tilts his head towards him, tracing the scar that was Cody’s visual marker of individuality and smoothing away the tension in his shoulders with only a touch. When they part, the Jedi sits down next to Cody on the bed, then reaches forward to take Rex’s other hand and kiss his knuckles. “It’s good to see your eyes, _cyar’ika_.” He glances to Rex between copper lashes, and Rex opens his mouth to give him a properly witty reply, but his voice catches in his throat.

He had been half-way in love with the Jedi General since the first time their eyes had met, back when Rex had just been a lieutenant in Ghost Company. He had been enraptured by the colour of the young Master’s eyes. They were beautiful; the colour of the waters of Kamino on a clear day and just as deep. The exact colour was always hard to pin down, shifting as they were through shades of grays, blues, and greens, and everything in between depending on his mood, just like the sky or sea changed with the weather. They were enchanting, and Rex still couldn’t understand how they’d look at him and see something worth loving.

There was gold in the blue now, bubbles of it that bursts and swirls hypnotically, making him seem wilder than he had been before.The bags under his eyes were darker now, his skin paler, and it reminds Rex eerily of the eyes of the Sith as the gold continues to spread like an oil spill the longer Obi-Wan studies him.

A hand reaches across his line of sight, catching the Jedi by the chin and jerking his head around until Obi-Wan is staring at Cody instead.

“ _Udesii_ , Obi-Wan!” Cody barks, his tone taking on the edge he used to scold arrogant shinies that would likely get their squads killed if they didn’t pack it in, and it’s such an odd tone for his brother to use against their _jetii_ that it snaps Rex out of his state of shock. Cody is frowning at his General, eyes hard, but there’s something scared in the tilt of his lips.

Obi-Wan scowls right back - which is just as odd and even more alarming - before he shudders, blinking heavily, and Cody studies his eyes. “ _Ni ceta_ , _ner alor_.” Whatever he sees is enough for Cody, because his grip relaxes and he offers their lover an apologetic kiss, which Obi-Wan accepts readily.

When he turns back to Rex his eyes are blue again, and his expression is strained. “I’m sorry for scaring you, Rex.” He murmurs, squeezing the captain’s hand to accentuate his apology, and Rex squeezes back.

“Obi-Wan?” He questions, and he’s not proud of the way his voice shakes.

The copper haired man looks pained. “I am so sorry to have dragged you into this.” He murmurs, and there’s something in his tone that makes Rex frown.

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily, _cyare_.” He says firmly, and it makes the man’s lips twitch sadly, reaching out to cradle Rex’s cheek like he was something precious.

“I’m afraid I did something I’m not very proud of after what they did to you.” Obi-Wan says, and a small bubble of gold rises up from the blue as he speaks, only to retreat again when Rex leans into his touch.

He remembers what Cody had said - that the slavers were already dead when they had arrived. That Obi-Wan had called them.

Rex isn’t stupid - he can put the pieces together.

“You killed them.” He notes, not judging, but surprised, and Obi-Wan nods.

“I won’t apologize for that.” Obi-Wan informs him, which makes Rex snort.

He wouldn’t either, not after what those bastards had done.

“I’m glad you’re alright, Rex.” The Jedi says, something meaningful in his eyes, “You scared me.”

 _Fear leads to anger_ , Rex remembers, and something heavy settles into his stomach, “General - Obi-Wan, _you_ -” He can’t finish the sentence, but he doesn’t need to, because Cody winces and Obi-Wan’s expression tightens with guilt and sorrow as he averts his eyes. He’s expecting anger, Rex realizes - he’s expecting Rex to tear away from him, to leave him like so many others had before him.

Well, Rex can’t have that.

He tightens his hold on his Jedi, pulling his attention back to himself, and as soon as those blue eyes are on him once again, Rex speaks, “ _Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum_.” It’s so much more powerful to speak those words in Mando’a. It makes it feel like a vow, like a promise that he wouldn’t leave him, and it makes Obi-Wan’s eyes soften.

“Told you.” Cody says in amusement, and the Jedi huffs at him.

“You needn’t be so smug about it, my dear.” Obi-Wan says, then gives Rex a soft kiss on the tip of his nose. With a grumble, Rex slides his hand around the back of his lover’s neck to pull him into a deeper, more passionate kiss. When they part, Rex rests his forehead against Obi-Wan’s, closing his eyes as the Jedi gently rubs his aching temples.

He’s still Obi-Wan, still the man he fell in love with, no matter what he had done to get them out of that _haran_.

“You said we weren’t going to the Resolute.” Rex finally says, after a long moment of silence, enjoying having Cody and Obi-Wan near him after so long of a collar around his neck. He pulls away enough to look both men in the eyes, studying their expressions. “Where _are_ we going then?”

Cody’s lips press together, his eyes darkening into something thunderous, and Obi-Wan’s fingers press harder against the bandage around Rex’s head - right in the same place where Cody had his own bacta patch.

“Kamino.” His Jedi finally says, voice dark with a promise of a reckoning, “The scientists have a lot of things to answer for.”

**Author's Note:**

> haran - "hell"  
> Udesii - "calm down/pack it in"  
> verd’ika - "little soldier"  
> K’uur - "hush"  
> kov'nyn - "headbutt/Keldabe Kiss"  
> Me’bana - "what happened?"  
> cyar’ika - "darling/sweetheart"  
> cyare - "beloved"  
> ni ceta - grovelling apology  
> ner alor - "my commander"  
> Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum - "I love you"


End file.
